Jesus our Faithful Friend

Joan showed up at my office desperate and scared. Before she came, she had explained that she heard condemning internal voices and felt hopeless and worthless. She added that she was addicted to alcohol and wanted to die. When she walked into the counseling room, Joan began with this disclaimer. "I'm an agnostic." The look on her face as she told me this said, "I have really been wounded by someone religious." After some get-acquainted chitchat, I said, "Would you entertain a 'what if' question?" "Of course," she said. "What if there is a God?" She said , "I am very uncomfortable with that statement." After talking for a time abut the possibility of the existence of a supreme being, I asked permission to go a step further. I asked her, "What if there is a God who is a personal God?" "That thought frightens me!" she exclaimed. This resulted in a thought-provoking discussion concerning the possibility of a personal God. I then asked if I could take the discussion one step further. She agreed. I said, "What if there is a personal God who loves you?" "That's impossible!" she retorted. I sensed something deep and possibly horrible lurking beneath this outburst, and I asked more questions, probing her and waiting for honest answers when she deliberated. Soon, a floodgate of emotions welled out. She exclaimed, with a level of intensity I rarely see, "I grew up in an evangelical home and was taken to Church on a regular basis. At the same time my parents were engaging in drunken orgies in our home. As she described her childhood experiences, I began to understand the horror lurking inside. Joan had been exposed to the most vile sin and abuse at an early age. As a result, she grew up confused and cynical about religion and God. The god of her parents was a dirty joke. She recoiled at the thought of knowing such a god. In further conversations I was able to present the living and true God, citing specifically the character and person of Jesus. Using many Scriptures, I showed Joan four truths about the caring and vibrant life of Jesus of Nazareth: Jesus came down from a perfect home in heaven to a sinful earth not only to show people how to live abundantly, but also to make it possible for them to have that abundance in reality (from John 10:10). He gave up all His possessions in order to identify with men and women and be like them so that people would know He truly understands their plight (from Hebrews 2:17-18). Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings. He purposely chose not to show His glory to people, but was like them in every way, experiencing poverty and pain, rather than glory and power (from Philippians 2:6-8). Christ became a servant to those around Him, even to the point of washing His own disciples' feet so that He could show them He was not only willing to put them before Himself, but to set an example for how they were to behave toward others as well (for example, Luke 22:27; John 13:3-16). Through these truths, I was able to show this counselee that Jesus is the God who prays for me, loves me, lives in me, and serves me. Joan was astonished at these revelations, finding them attractive but difficult to accept. When we finished, I asked, "What will you do with the true Jesus?" Joan didn't know and continues thinking about that question. Not all counseling situations lead to a conversion, and I continue to pray for her salvation.

Good News, Bad News

Please take time to read Galatians 1:1-10. Ever hear of a paper that only printed good news? In our world filled with trouble it is becoming more and more difficult to find any "Good news." Perhaps such a news paper would be a bargain. The Good News of salvation through faith in Christ is the most important message in the world. But now this message was being attacked, and Paul was out to defend the truth of the Gospel. False teachers were spreading a false "Gospel" which was a mixture of law and grace, and Paul did not stand by and do nothing. How does Paul approach the Galatian Christians in his attempt to teach them the truth about the Gospel? In the opening verses of the above passage the Apostle takes three definite steps as he prepares to fight this battle. First, he explains his authority. Paul is careful to let them know the authority he has comes from the Lord. He has three sources of authority. His ministry is the first source he mentions. Paul was an Apostle. Paul had founded the churches in Galatia. His message is the second source of authority. It is centered in the Person of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Christ paid the price that He might achieve a purpose, that is, delivering sinners from bondage. The Judaizers wanted to lead the Christians out of the liberty of grace into the bondage of law. Legalism has to do with attitude. A legalist will treasure man made rules rather than treasuring Christ. His motive is Paul's third source of authority. The false teachers were not ministering for the glory of Christ, but for their own glory. Paul's motive was pure and godly: he wanted to glorify Jesus Christ. Paul explained his authority. He is ready for a second step as he begins this battle for the liberty of the Christian. Second, Paul expresses his anxiety. The first reason for Paul's anxiety was that they were moving aways from the grace of God. They were abandoning liberty for legalism. They had become infatuated with the religion of the Judaizers. They taught salvation by faith plus circumcision. The second reason for Paul's anxiety: they were perverting the Gospel of God. Perverting the Gospel by adding to it. The word "Pervert" means to "To turn about, to change into an opposite character." They had reversed the Gospel and taken it back into the Law. The Law never was designed to save, only to lead people to Christ. The third reason for Paul's anxiety: it was troubling the Galatians. The verb "Trouble" carries with it the idea of perplexity confusion, and unrest. Do you have a lack of peace? Examine your walk, you might consider examining your belief system. Grace always leads to peace, but the believers had deserted grace and therefore had no peace in their hearts. Having explained his authority and expressed his anxiety, Paul now takes the third step. Third, he exposes his adversaries. The Judaizers are identified by the false Gospel that they preached. The test of a man's ministry is his faithfulness to the Word of God. Paul pronounced the Judaizers "Anathama" which means "Dedicated to destruction." The Judaizers are characterized by the false motives that they practiced. They accused Paul of being a compromise and "Adjusting" the Gospel to fit the Gentiles. Its easy to condemn others with you are wrong yourself. But in reality, it was the false teacher who was the man-pleaser. The servant of God is constantly tempted to compromise in order to attract and please men. Paul was not a politician: he was an ambassador. His task was not to "Play politics" but to proclaim a message. These Judaizers, on the other hand, were cowardly compromisers who mixed law and grace hoping to please both Jews and Gentiles. Paul explained his authority. He expressed his anxiety, and he exposed his adversaries. Our authority is in Christ. We are Priests and Kings. We are to cast all of our anxieties on the Lord. And we are to pray for our human enemies and resist our spiritual adversaries. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.